NHS Out of Hours Helpline Problems

Cornwall's out of hours doctors service says it has fixed a problem with its phone system.

At one point on Saturday afternoon health bosses were advising patients to call NHS Direct or, if they needed urgent medical attention to dial 999.

Now the Primary Care Trust says the problem has been resolved.

The telephone malfunction caused some patients to have trouble getting through to the service. On an average summer Saturday more than a thousand patients would be expected to use the number.

A spokesperson for the PCT told Pirate FM that the problem had been down to a "technical glitch." BT engineers are investigating what caused the issue, which last a few hours. A 'fail safe' is being used while the root cause is identified.